Businesses and individuals rely upon computer networks for exchanging communications and information. Computer networks have become virtually indispensable because it allows users to readily gain access to and exchange information of all types (e.g., sound, text, numerical data, video, graphics, multi-media, etc.) with other computers, databases, websites, and individuals. However, due to their usefulness and convenience, the traffic or amount of data being transmitted over the various networks is dramatically increasing. As the traffic over a network increases, it tends to decrease the network's overall response time. This is due to the fact that a network has a limited amount of data that it can carry over a given amount of time. When the amount of data to be transmitted exceeds the network's bandwidth, the network becomes overloaded, and the time or "latency" for transmitting a packet of data increases dramatically. This delay due to overcongestion on the network can be critical in some applications. For example, financial and stock market data for brokerages must be processed and kept up-to-date. Other real-time applications which are time-sensitive include on-line banking, on-line game playing, video teleconferencing, etc. Hence, when the computer network becomes too slow, it negatively impacts the effectiveness and efficiency of the personnel operating on that network.
One way to solve the congestion problem is to upgrade the network to give it increased bandwidth to make it faster. A faster, high-bandwidth network can transmit more data packets in shorter periods of time. However, this is an extremely expensive, time-consuming, and disruptive process. It often entails re-installing higher capacity lines and discarding older equipment in place of newer, faster, and more costly models. Furthermore, advanced networks are harder to maintain, service, and administer. As such, upgrades are not undertaken lightly. In the meantime, users must suffer through frustratingly slow response times. Further complicating matters is the fact that computer networks often experience heightened activity and traffic at certain peak operating times. This may result when multiple computers attempt to log onto and transmit over the network simultaneously or when an application is transmitting a very large file in a burst. It is very difficult to predict and prevent the occurrence of these traffic peaks.
In an effort to minimize the impact of the surge in traffic and to generally manage the overall traffic on the network, designers have used storage buffers to temporarily store the data packets each computer wishes to transmit. If the network is currently too busy to handle a data packet, that packet is queued into the buffers. Enqueued data packets must wait in turn until the opportunity arises for them to be sent over the network. In the meantime, the computer can perform other processing functions and does not have to wait for the packets to be successfully transmitted.
Although these queue buffers are beneficial, they still do not solve all the problems. One problem is that including these queue buffers increases the cost of manufacturing network devices. Hence, designers have calculated the optimum amount of queue buffers to implement from a cost-benefit standpoint. Given this buffer size constraint, there may be instances when the buffers are full. If the queue buffers are full, a data packet may be dropped, or the computer may have to periodically monitor the queue buffers to determine whether a slot has opened up. In either case, that data packet as well as successive data packets cannot be queued for eventual transmission over the network. As discussed above, there may be instances when it is critical to transmit certain data packets. For example, a data packet containing key network administration data should be transmitted as soon as possible. Yet, the queue buffers might be filled with data packets relating to non-critical e-mail messages. The network admininstration data must then wait until the enqueued e-mail packets are transmitted.
Thus, there is a need for some apparatus or method for creating prioritized queue buffers, whereby time-critical data packets are given preference in the enqueing process.